Spinning Hook Kick

Maddie was involved in some pretty detailed training tonight in regards to spin hook kicks, but other moves as well.  The students were working pretty hard when I stepped into the studio, completely focused on technique and working to improve movement and execution.  Maddie and all the students are showing such growth over the past few years.

Maddie did well in both her classes.  It's two of them back-to-back, and sometimes the numbers of students on Mondays are smaller for the later class, and a bit more intimate.  A lot of personal attention can go to the students, as you can see above.

While Maddie was doing all that, I was out on the usual tour of grocery stores, the thing you have to do in order to get everything on the grocery list.  Supplies are in such a state that not every grocery store has every item you're looking for.  We've gotten used to that now. The gas prices are going up again too, which is something else we've gotten used to.  At least I found everything needed on the list, including a few items for tomorrow's dinner.

Tonight I put up the white tree we usually have in Maddie's room, the one with her ornaments on it.  We put it out in the living room, and we put a lot of the Chinese New Year ornaments and decorations on it.  Along with lights too!

It was a good day, although a quiet one.  I'm still walking on the treadmill, listening to podcasts about Presidents, one at a time.  I just finished Franklin Pierce, who was quite low on the accomplishment scale, unless the definition of "accomplishment" is getting our country closer to a Civil War.

Anyway, we got some things done around the house, and of course Maddie was getting things done at school.  The weather wasn't quite as cold today.  The birds are out there at the feeder, and the squirrels acting as obnoxious as ever, ruining things for everyone.  Periodically, we'll spot one, and it takes so much effort to get up our back deck, and you're pretty much a sitting duck when you're up there.  I let the squirrels know just as much, cornering them... I need to get a big squirt gun or something, right?  That's not so bad.  It's just annoying when you have things set up for the birds, and again I don't mind squirrels on the ground.  It's that they climb the railings, work their way down to the birdhouses, and actually knock them off, spilling the seeds everywhere.  One more time, squirrel.  One more time and I'll knock you down there!  I'm exaggerating.

Tonight we watched another movie, somewhat in preparation for tomorrow's holiday.  It's a movie that Maddie really likes:  "Abominable."  It's a great tour of China, and a really sweet movie.  We were all on the couch with the fire in the fireplace, snugging together after a nice meal.  

After that upstairs we continued our reading, and we prayed too.  It was a quiet day, but we've got some busy ones coming up. 

Day After the Fast

We had quite a few surprises before the service, including a sudden outbreak of illnesses that took out two cast members plus even Pastor Lance and his family.  All were mild, or at least short-lived, but enough to impact the service before it happened today.  Nevertheless, it was an absolutely wonderful morning.  Maddie was back in her role as one of the Baker Street Irregulars, who all did just fine this morning on stage.  Camille was a flower girl that was so over the top as somewhat of an Eliza Doolittle.  I just love that character - there's definitely a bit of Professor Higgins in the rest of the cast who looks down on her crazy outbursts and loud cockney accent.  

Tonight Maddie was back with Free Chapel Youth, and it was a big day at the church.  Our fast is over, and there was a lot of prayer, along with some special words in the morning service and this one as well.  It was a strong service, but I was at home for this one - worn out and scratchy throat from this morning.  I was sharing the message this morning, one about the Prodigal Son, and of course I was also in the skit as well.  I needed a bit of a rest.  I got home this afternoon, and we had our first post-fasting meal together, something Mom made up with salmon and these cheese rolls that are so good.  I slept after that, and Maddie got a shower, and that was it for our touch-and-go.  We were off back to the church again, where I dropped Maddie off for a good night.

Here's something else Maddie had to look forward to this evening.  They had this chicken from a local restaurant that just recently opened up and has been super popular.  It's called Huey Magoo's, and the focus is on chicken there.  All the youth got a nice chicken dinner tonight after the service, along with small groups and just a nice time hanging around together.  Considering everyone's been on a fast, something like Huey Magoo's was something all the kids were really looking forward to.

We got home and just had to finish up season two of "Secret of Sulphur Springs."  And even though we saw it coming, there it was again, a big cliffhanger.  Can't believe we have to wait so long to find out what happens next.  Maddie really likes the show though, as do we all.  We pretty much watched all of season two in just a couple sittings.  I doubt it's the last time we'll watch these episodes too, but Maddie and I were pretty anxious to get home tonight and finish out the season.  One aspect that is nice about each season is that despite the cliffhangers and ongoing mysteries, there is some closure to the continuing story of each season.  And there are plenty of Easter eggs that point to future events that haven't happened yet.  It's a super fun show, and it's got that creepy vibe but at the same time it's for families.  

It was late after that was over, and a pretty good day.  Of course we dove into "The Syndrome" after that, and just like with the television show, Maddie kept wanting to hear just a little more, and then a little more after that, as the story has gotten to a part where the characters are in danger.  We'll see what happens next!  Until then, we said our prayers, and we went to bed early tonight.  It was a good day.

National Puzzle Day

It was National Puzzle Day, and by coincidence, we were doing a new puzzle in the living room.  You can see Maddie working on part of it above, while she and I were taking turns throughout the day getting the thing together.  It was a murder-mystery puzzle, which meant that we had to read a few pages of a mystery and then put the puzzle together in order to look for clues to solve the thing.  We had nothing to go on with the image itself, so we only knew what it would all look like when we were done with the puzzle.

And so there was much rejoicing when we finally got it done.  I think it was about 550 pieces, and the final image showed a bit of fatal mayhem and chaos, along with one small clue, which both Maddie and I spotted eventually.  We saw something out of place amongst the see of clues, and made our guesses from that.  We were on the right track, as that one item was the calling card, and Maddie guess correctly whodunnit.  Although, she also admits that part of her deduction came down to guesswork, as if you have a politician as a suspect, typically the pompous politician is the guilty one.

Anyway, that was a theme throughout the day.  So was Sulphur Springs.  We revisited this spooky hotel area, binge watching nearly the entire second series.  We may go on to see the remaining two episodes tomorrow.  In fact, I can't imagine a world that exists where we in fact don't see those last two episodes tomorrow.  The show has been great fun, and really well done, puling you along with an intriguing supernatural sci-fi storyline that makes you want to watch just one more episode, and then one more, and then one more... and so on.

This morning, Maddie and I were off to see a local guy about getting more wood, as our supply has greatly dwindled.  We loaded up the car and then unloaded the car, running the fire in the fireplace nearly all day.  The reason for this is the dreadful cold outside.  It's the coldest it's been all year, or perhaps all winter might be a more impressive way of putting it.  Regardless, it's cold out there. 

With that in mind, we stayed indoors largely today.  Tomorrow's service at church is going to be a big day, and I was focused on the skit and on the message that I'm going to deliver - I'm doing the preaching tomorrow.  It'll be a good day.

We read tonight, and we prayed.  Then we were under those blankets pretty quick.  The fast ends today - we're already at the end of the twenty-one days!

Winter Chill

Maddie had a really long sparring session tonight!  Apparently, there are some instructors that push the students a little harder, and Tucker is one of them - all of them were sparring each other in a large format where everyone shifted positions from time to time, sparring a new opponent.  It went on for a good while, and sure enough, everyone got to spar Tucker himself.  Maddie fared well with that encounter, although she was certainly more fatigued by that point.  Everyone was more exhausted by that time.  But it was fun to see all the sparring going on.  Too much to catch it all, but these kids are doing really well.

Tomorrow the cold weather is going to take a deep dive, and the wind chill is supposed to make it feel even colder.  That said, we have to get more wood tomorrow.  We've somehow used up most of our supply of cut wood for the fireplace, and that's a lot more wood used this winter than last.  From what I read, we'll have a warming trend after this, but then in February it goes right back into the colder temperatures again. We'll have to hear from this groundhog to see what happens for real.  

Tonight we were watching season one of "Secrets of Sulphur Springs" again, just to catch up on things before starting season two.  Season two was just released this week.  We raced through quite a few episodes leading up to that great cliffhanger at the end, the one where we all laughed at when the credits started rolling, leaving us sitting there thinking, "Are you kidding?  We have to wait a year to find out what happens next?"  And despite the fact that they'll probably do the same thing to us again with season two, we can't wait to start on it.

Maddie had her test on sub-Saharan geography today, which is one of those things I couldn't tell you much about presently.  I mean, I know where South Africa, Namibia and of course Madagascar is.  But I get lost in the actual locations of Zambia and some of those other nations in the southern part of the Dark Continent.  I think this warrants another look though - certainly given that our new friends from Zambia have arrived here and are now living in Gainesville.  Yes, they moved from Africa to be here closer to this church here.  Amazing.  Simultaneous to that, I met another family from Virginia that moved here to be closer tot he church.  They quickly sold their house and had favor with the entire process, and here they are.  People are coming from all over.  

Our "Kingdom Keepers" story continued tonight, and after that we were praying.  Maddie was off in her room for quiet time, surfing and reading her Bible app as well. She at the book of Exodus at this point.  It's a great app, because she and the other girls are reading together, and it marks everyone's progress.  It's a great bit of accountability.  I should have signed up with them!

Tonight Mom and I have been watching some highlights and clips of athletes in competitions leading up to the Winter Olympics next week.  Yeah, that's coming up soon!  We'll have the longer ice skating competitions playing, but we've also been watching plenty of events with snowboards, bobsleds, and skis too.  I actually can't wait to watch a curling game too.  Should be great stuff to see.  Hopefully the world can have peace during all this, but does anyone remember Russia and the nation of Georgia around the time of the last Winter Olympics? 

Anyway, we were off to sleep under mounds of blankets, nice and snug as the chilly wind blows outside.  It's going to be a very cold night out there.

Choreography

Maddie has been working on choreography lately, and she even did a quick walk-through demonstration for me, showing off what she's learned thus far.  She's been preparing for the Suessical, and it looks like it will be a really fun production in about a month's time or so.  They're still learning all the steps and moves, and of course Maddie has been enjoying it so much.

We were at taekwondo tonight, also doing some grocery shopping to catch up on things.  The shelves have been empty lately, still affected quite a bit from the snow threat perhaps and of course all these shipping troubles our nation has had lately.  We have to make trips to different grocery stores to see who has what.  One place is out of chicken, or tin foil, or even hot sauce or whatever, and so you move on to the next place.  I wound up going to three different grocery stores tonight just to get the entire list Mom made, all this done while Maddie was at taekwondo kicking people.  Actually, she started out as usual, helping smaller and younger students with their class, and then doing the leadership class that followed.  She's still using the sword, swinging it to and fro and doing her best with one of her least favorite weapons.  She really is getting better with it though!

We're running out of wood outside, and the weather is about to turn colder.  That's okay - a nice fire in the fireplace is a pleasant thing each night.  Mom tends to it more often than not, keeping it going through the night.  Even the smell of a fire is a pleasant thing, that crackling sound too.  We had that on while Mom and Nana were watching this British baking show, which seems to hold Nana's attention better than most things.  In fact, this show has been on a lot lately, so much that the rest of us are kind of tired of it.  But it works, so we put up with it.

Let's see... tonight we read after Maddie spent a good amount of time studying, and of course that was "The Syndrome."  The story has been fun, with another time traveling aspect that seems to be something of a theme lately.  We read tonight, and we were praying too, but it's a school night - we were in bed kinda earlier this evening.

Australia Day

G'day!  Maddie's small group tonight was good - a long one actually.  And that's okay - the girls were talking and praying for one another, and it just sort of went on for a bit.  And that was fine with us.  Traditionally, they play a game each week, and I try to make one up for Camille based on a thought she had to celebrate whatever holiday that Wednesday happens to be.  So today is Australia Day, and I made a memory game, where the girls had to find matching cards that all had something to do with Australia.  I love Darla up there.  You can see just a few of the cards, the opposite side showing a small graphic of Australia with a number on it to select.  Other cards featured Chris Hemsworth and Hugh Jackman, as well as kangaroos, the Sydney Opera House, Ayers Rock, and the Australian flag.  I didn't have a card to show insane national leaders driving the land down under even further under because of draconian policies related to this virus.  Anyway, there was the game, and then the more meaningful night together with the girls.  I'm so glad Maddie is a part of this, and has been a part of it for so long.  

She was dong some homework today, but I brought home Chinese food because Mom was in the mood for that.  So we had some vegetarian plates, which we've had once before on this fast - the Jade Green without meats is basically a collection of broccoli, asparagus, and snow peas.  Mixed with fried rice, it's a nice meal.  Maddie goes for the egg rolls and the won ton soup.  We were apparently celebrating Chinese New Year a little early.  Don't worry - we'll get more Chinese food next week for our bigger celebration.  The Year of the Tiger is coming up soon.

Maddie took a picture the state of our snowman today.  It's hanging in there.  Sort of!  Another one "hanging in there" is our neighborhood cat, who seems to have taken a liking to us.  He'll jump up on a cushion in a nice comfy place in the house, and fall fast asleep without any worries.  It's nice and warm inside the house.  Of course, it's been slightly warmer outside lately during the day so that's not really a big problem.  At night, it's been colder, as what usually happens this time each year.  The cat spent the night with us the other night, not wanting to get up or move or go out or anything.  Only first thing in the morning did we hear the meowing, and we knew it was time to let him out.

The cat and the birds are entertaining to Nana, who looks on the back deck with amusement.  The cat took a cat nap on Nana's lap as she was watching the latest binge - this British baking show.  We like the show ourselves, but perhaps not over and over and over again all day long.  But that seems to make Nana happy so we're going with that at the moment.  She'll still dive into her mourning frequently, rushing upstairs to be alone and "talk with dad."  But we had some bright moments today too.  Good or bad all comes in waves, washing ashore at seemingly random times.

I finished the skit for Sunday today and sent it to Maddie and the other cast members.  The Sherlock Holmes mystery is moving on.  Mom made two new costumes, and I've got the musical tracks lined up and the scripts all printed, plus the keynotes for the day all set up.  

I've slowed down on the old radio shows that I've been listening to, shifting now to a podcast about each president.  I've become fascinated with Grant, and have learned quite a bit about Hayes and Tyler too.  I already knew quite a bit about Adams and Washington, but still learned a few more things with their podcasts.  Next up is Jefferson, who I recently read a book about his dealings with the pirates in the Mediterranean.  Speaking of Presidents, Mom got me a few new Presidential ornaments - there's a sale on these each year, and I'm doing a lot of catching up.  In the mail came one for Eisenhower, Grant, Hayes, and McKinley too.   These are wonderful ornaments, and they're now part of my growing collection of about thirteen or so.  Let's see... that means about thirty two to go.  I'm not entirely sure that Maddie cares one bit, except to say that these ornaments will be something she'll have to figure out what to do with some day.  Good luck - each one does have a bit of value, so there's that.

Anyway, tonight's programming was the latest episode of "The Book of Boba Fett," which for some odd reason did not feature Boba Fett.  It was a really good episode with jawas, an Ishi Tibb, Klatooinians, R5-D4, pit droids, Peli Motto, the Armorer, a N-1 Starfighter, and oh, by the way, it's Din Djarin, the Mandalorian!  Quite an episode!  We all sat and enjoyed it on the couch, this just before heading up to read, and then say our prayers.  We were all a bit tired tonight, and it's still cold out there.  So we stayed up a little bit longer, reading in our own beds, and soon were fast asleep.

Frosty the Snow Lump

Our snowman has lost quite a bit of weight lately, not so much the presence he was about nine days ago.  The sunshine was a bit much today, and while it was probably not so enjoyable to him, the rest of us really appreciated a warmer afternoon in the sunlight.  Lately in the office at KidPak, we've taken to moving ourselves to places with windows as the air conditioning frequently gets a bit too cold.  We'll bask in that sunlight as we work, and it's been glorious warmth.

Maddie was at school this morning and beyond - we got there at about 8:20 this morning.  The recent trend has been getting to the school after eight, whereas she used to get to school so much earlier than that.  Nowadays, she relishes sleep and staying under those blankets just a few minutes more.  Racing down the stairs, we say our prayers and we take a picture of her in front of the fireplace... and then we're off.  In less than ten minutes I'm usually there to the school and back, saying, "Have a great day" and "Love you" and that's that.

She was getting a shower tonight, and working on homework for a while, including some Spanish.  Mom, Nana and I were wrapping up the first season of "The Chosen," which has been outstanding.  Nicodemus' first encounter with Jesus was such a wonderful moment, so beautiful.  The presentations of different accounts and people in the Bible has been very refreshing, putting an emphasis on the humanity of all of these famous names, especially Jesus.  

I was working on this upcoming weekend's skit today, nearly finishing it up.  Maddie's character is back, as are the other Baker Street Irregulars, and it should be a lot of fun.  Tonight we were taking some of the last of the Christmas ornaments off the tree, although we still have a few left to go in the morning.  We wait on this one because Nana likes the tree so much, and it gives her something nice to talk about.  

Maddie joined us in the living room for a few episodes of "The Secret of Sulphur Springs," which we're starting over from the beginning with.  We got a few of those episodes in before it was bedtime.

We read from "The Syndrome" tonight, and we said our prayers.  I was pretty tired at the end of the day.  Nana is doing much better, not coughing so much.  But she does get herself worked up into a frenzy of grief occasionally, and then the breathing is labored.  The strategy is to change the subject in her mind, moving her focus to something else. 

It was a quiet day in January.  At least here.  There's no so much quiet in the world, as there are rumors of war and so on.  It's a war we're not exactly prepared for, as nobody wants a war right now.  At least not anyone with common sense.  And there are other bits of bad news here or there too.  I had a dream of snakes all around the house, but none inside the house.  One snake became a huge dragon that was looking for a way in.  There's a lot to pray about. 

Stick Battle!

So tonight Maddie picked up her sword once more, swinging it around for a large percentage of the leadership class.  They were really training with these swords, moving from position to position.  It was a large class tonight too.

But that's not the end of practice... there were a lot of students in black belt class afterwards, and it was an odd number, and Maddie had been paired up with someone she's already been sparring, so it was time to face off against a new opponent, and who was that opponent?

Master Edge and Maddie clearly were both having a really great time with this, judging by the smiles on their faces.  He was very complimentary of her, and honestly, watching this was the highlight of the day.  It was about a minute or two, but that smile never left Maddie's face!

Here's someone not smiling.  It's a photo of our snowman today, and he seems a bit glum.  Surprisingly, he's still there after eight days or so of sunshine, and even a little bit of rain one day.  This morning, the squirrels were picking on his backside somewhat, which was amusing.  Poor guy!

Maddie had a good day at school - she's got a good bit of homework tonight, and I was there to pick up her at school, which is what happens each Monday afternoon.  Usually I get to read in the car, or listen to some podcasts - lately there's been a Sherlock Holmes series I'm listening to, and a Presidential one that goes through the Presidents one by one.  Today was all about William Henry Harrison, who I learned probably did not die of pneumonia as I've always thought, but in fact may have fell victim to a terrible plumbing situation at the White House.  In fact, that terrible source of water for the Executive mansion may be responsible for the deaths of not only him, but a later President as well.  It's hard to fathom that something so obvious is responsible for something so dire.  It's terribly sad too.

Anyway, we were taking down ornaments today, putting up puzzle pieces and so on.  I was listening to some stuff as I was walking on the treadmill, and Mom was doing a lot of cleaning up where she could.  The neighborhood cat has been spending more time with us, sitting on the bed up in our bedroom taking long naps, and then getting ready to go out and chase the squirrels after eating some of the tuna Mom puts out for him.

We read from "The Syndrome" tonight, and Maddie has been keeping up with her chronological reading of the Bible.  She's at the story of Joseph currently.  Mom and I have been watching episodes of "The Chosen," which has been really good.  Tonight's episode showed friends lowering a paralytic man through the roof to see Jesus.  It's all really well done, and will change a lot about the presentation of passion plays from this point on.  

We said our prayers tonight, and went to bed, this time with a new guest inside the house.  Our neighborhood cat was sleeping on some cushions we brought in from the front porch, and amazingly slept through most of the night right there.  He was worn out!  He's been happy here, and quite content.  And quite comfortable apparently!

Get a Clue 2022

We were back on Baker Street today with a return to our series, "Get a Clue."  It was a fantastic start to a new KidPak series, and although we've visited with Sherlock Holmes and company two times before, this was a special start with an all new cast of characters.

And once again, you can see these costumes that Mom had put together this week, many of them just yesterday.  They came out well, and our opening skit was just right today, as John H. Watson introduced a few of the Baker Street Irregulars to the audience, and eventually Sherlock Holmes himself showed up.

It was a great morning.  Maddie has been working on her British accent all week, and she did very well.  All the kids did really well, honestly.  The entire cast had their lines down, and delivered them perfectly, creating a world onstage that was so much fun.  There were laughs and there was a mystery too, and of course a Biblical bottom line.  Maddie was a newsie, a role I developed for her because of her love of "Newsies."  She was selling "papes" and letting everyone know the latest news, even things that aren't in the paper.  

It was a solid service, with great animated videos, plus a great message that continued our theme of searching and seeking, which of course is our church's fasting theme.  

We got home and Mom had a nice lunch set up for us.  I had this mushroom and onion gravy, along with potatoes and eggs too.  We started to watch a movie, but Nana had a little fit and that got shut down pretty quickly.  She was just wanting to wander around outside in thirty degree weather, and she's not completely recovered from the recent illness either, still coughing occasionally.  She just wanted to sit outside on the chairs, even if there aren't any cushions, arguing with everyone that it isn't that cold outside, when everyone present knows it was in fact a pretty chilly day.

Fortunately, I was able to get Maddie over to youth tonight, and it was a great night there for her.  I was at home afterwards doing another jigsaw puzzle with a cat.  Speaking of which, we have this neighborhood cat that seems to really like coming to our house lately.  Maybe it has something to do with Mom and Nana feeding him all the time, but now that it's cold outside, he sits at the door until someone lets him in, and sure enough, he finds a quiet comfy spot and this afternoon he was taking a pretty lengthy cat nap.  

Maddie enjoyed FCY tonight, plus the fast-friendly snacks they had.  The small groups and the large service were great, and I was back there to pick her up.  It's quite cold outside now.  Mom and Nana have been binge watching this British baking show, which seems to hold Nana's attention.  Maddie and I aren't really interested in it, especially after three or so hours.

We read tonight, and we prayed too.  This morning's KidPak services were a highlight of the day - the game's afoot!

Selling Papes

 

Mom was out for a while getting costumes, and put something together for Maddie's character at tomorrow's KidPak service.  She's a "newsie," a source of information for Sherlock Holmes, and in fact one of his famous Baker Street Irregulars.  The costume looks great!  I made this role up for Maddie so she could be a newsie, something she's been into of course since watching the musical and even singing that song "Seize the Day."

There's our snowman!  He's still there, although now he has a rubber chicken head!  He will easily be still standing tomorrow, and that makes a whole week that this pile of snow has been standing here.  Pretty impressive for down here in Georgia.  Snow doesn't stick around that long, typically. 

We had on endless cooking shows, because that seems to keep Nana calm.  Mom was out shopping for a time, and that wasn't good for Nana, who can't go anywhere currently because it's pretty cold out there and she's still been under the weather.  So we did our best.  But it's been rough.

One interesting moment came when I was taking some material down to the basement.  I saw a black widow in the house, underneath a stack of mats we had brought in from the garage.  I was shocked - and didn't kill it outright.  I captured it in a glass jar with the idea of showing Mom, and just making sure it was in fact a black widow.  But under closer inspection, we discovered it wasn't a black widow.  There was no tell-tale red hourglass marking underneath, or any red at all.  In fact, the spider had the same shape, but was actually a dark brown with some spotty markings of a lighter brown on the back.  We looked it up online and discovered this spider was actually a false black widow.  I've never seen or heard of such a thing before.  We're confident of our identification, and reading more about this spider, we've discovered that they're not aggressive and additionally, they actually are known to attack and eat real black widows.  So they're what king snakes are to copperheads.  Anyway... ya' learn something every day, right?

Okay, let's see... what else happened today... oh yeah, we finished one cat jigsaw puzzle.  Maddie and I labored on this one for a good while, a 500-piece puzzle that took a good portion of the day.  It helped with the cooking shows playing on television.  Maddie finished it up all on her own, and just like that, we're ready for another one soon.

But tonight we had to get to bed early.  We've got an earlier morning tomorrow!  We read tonight from "The Syndrome," and after that said our prayers.  I had some lines to memorize, and soon enough I was off to sleep.

Swish!

Maddie was slashing and swinging her sword around tonight at taekwondo, still not her favorite weapon, but she's doing well with it regardless.  I need to get her to do some practice with a lightsaber after this - I keep forgetting that!

Her snowmen have probably seen their last day today, as you can see above.  They look like very interesting snow sculptures now.  We had the threat of snow, but it didn't quite time out well.  The rain came first while the temperatures were warmer, and then the cold came in afterwards.  It was quite cold, actually.  But no new snow this time.

Maddie had a good day at school, which of course had a quick turnaround as we were racing off to taekwondo.  I was doing finishing touches on certain parts of this weekend's KidPak launch of "Get a Clue," and writing some letters for FCY and KidPak too.  Maddie is reading "Romeo and Juliet," which makes me want to watch "Gnomeo and Juliet" again, and given the fact that we're in this new mystery series, maybe we should check out the sequel too, "Sherlock Gnomes."  

We read tonight from "The Syndrome," which is moving along nicely.  We prayed after that too, and soon after, we were off to sleep under about fifty pounds of blankets.  It's cold out there!

Empty Shelves

Taekwondo was tonight, although I was off grocery shopping while Maddie was kicking people.  Nana wasn't with us for this journey, as she was at home resting.  We've had a lot of nights this week where we don't really get much sleep, as she's been up and therefore keeping us up too.  It's funny sending me out grocery shopping with my big list and a shopping cart and doing the best I can to get all the items listed.  Although some of the empty shelves are jarring.  One entire aisle of frozen entrees was completely empty at one of the grocery stores I went to, and it was so strange to see.  

Maddie took a picture of it because it was such an odd sight to see in the land of plenty, but it's been a reoccurring theme.  This particular week has been unusual because of the threat of snow and so on, so perhaps that added to the supply chain issues.  But to see shelves this empty was still pretty amazing.

Maddie's taekwondo went well, of course.  She was helping as an instructor first, and then in her leadership class, working with the sword.  It's still not her favorite weapon, but she's gotten the hang of one particular move, or at least gotten better at it. 

School seems to be going well.  Maddie has met a new friend and was talking with her a bit.  I think things are going well, but she doesn't share too much about school, so there's not too much to talk about here.

Tonight we were watching "The Chosen" again, another couple episodes down.  The show is a fresh look at classic Bible stories, a show that humanizes some of these characters we know.  It's been really great.  Maddie is reading her Bible app as well, keeping up with that each night.  

We read from our book, and we said our prayers tonight, and after that it was time for bed.

RIP Sarlacc

We've had a menacing situation in the Dune Sea for as long as I remember, going back to 1983 or so.  Ever since then, it's been common knowledge that you don't go walking around or even riding around those sand dunes, unless you want to risk falling into the Great Pit of Carkoon, which of course has deep at the bottom a ginormous sarlacc.  So here we are, 38 years later, and finally someone's gone and done something about it.  Boba Fett did us all a favor and got rid of that pest in tonight's episode.  Or actually, it was Fennec Shand, who dropped one of the most wonderful weapons in history, a seismic charge, right down the creature's gullet.  What an episode.  This show has been great to watch for all of us old-school fans, and I'm really hoping we get to see that rogues gallery soon, those other bounty hunters.  Yes, we need their scum.  

We all watched that episode tonight, but Maddie had homework, plus she wanted to get a shower.  All of this followed her small group session tonight, which was another extra small one with only two girls there for the night.  But it still goes on as we're nearing two years.  Pretty amazing longevity.  She doesn't want to miss it, although there may be a few times she'll do just that coming up, this due to play practice for high school.

Our snowman is still hanging in there, though obviously reduced somewhat.  I think it might make it to this weekend, actually!  That's a custom-built snowman there, one built to last!  It was cool today, but the sun was out there.  Our office is so cold at KidPak that we move out to the common area where there are doors with windows that let in large amounts of sunlight.  It's the perfect place to work, sitting up a chair and table in the sunlight.  Nice and warm on a day like today!

I've been doing a lot of Sherlock research lately, listening to the old time radio show in the car to and from the office, listening to old episodes from 1946 or so.  Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce are so good with this radio drama.  The actors and limited sound effects really take you to various places along foggy streets in London, or as far away as palaces in India.  It's been great to listen to the shows.

Maddie has been studying her lines, practicing a cockney accent and actually getting fairly good with it.  Mom has been working on the costumes when she can, although this week has been super taxing with Nana, who is still not well.  She's coughing all night, and we're up frequently to get her medication and do what we can.  She doesn't want to go to the doctor, although at night she seems to be struggling to breathe, having worked herself into an emotional state that seems to only visit at night.  During the daylight, not so much on the coughing - but she is tired.  So are all of us.  Mom is even more so, doing her best, but really exhausted.  Tonight we went to bed earlier, but we still made time for reading, and we made time for prayers of course.  It was a decent day.

Spacestation Flyover

It was a clear night tonight, and that was perfect viewing for the International Space Station, which you can see above.  It's the star there, the light in the midst of the evening sky.  We were on the phone with Nana and Ye-Ye, who hadn't seen it before, so from our own houses, we were looking upwards to see if we can spot it.  It wasn't hard to see at all, a silent star in orbit around the earth.  

Our snowman did okay today, although by day's end, the harsh sunlight certainly took its toll, which you can see in this picture above.

Still, I remember making this Sunday morning, and there's a substantial core of solid ice there.  You can see the squirrel coming by for a visit, as the plate of seeds has finally succumbed to heat and gravity.

Maddie was back at school today, and kind of disappointed about it, but who wouldn't be?  Well, I suppose early Maddie would be disappointed, as she couldn't wait to get back to school.  Other counties like Hall County are off today, more or less as a precaution.  Granted, they did get some more snow in certain areas northeast of here.  Still, any day off for snow - whether it's there or not - is a better one than having to go in.  At least that was my thinking going to school.  Maddie may be thinking the same thing!

It was a good day today.  We had some figure skating championships on the television throughout the day, and we started a new jigsaw puzzle with cats singing Christmas carols.  Mom found this one at a thrift store and decided that's the one we were going to do.  I was finishing up the escape room idea for St. Patrick's Day - all that's needed are a few tweaks and we're good to go.  I finished the book on President Grant, and learned a lot more about the election of 1876 with President Hayes too.  Inspired by this, I finally picked the new ornaments to get from the White House Historical Association's January sale - Grant and Hayes certainly.  I also picked up Eisenhower's and one that was really cut down in price, McKinley's.  I currently have ornaments for Lyndon Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, Herbert Hoover, Harry Truman, Abraham Lincoln, Grover Cleveland, John F. Kennedy, Teddy Roosevelt, and Benjamin Harrison too.  Obviously, there are plenty more Presidents to go to get the full set.  I believe Nixon is the new one for this year.  Each year I'll pick up five or six, so it might take a few years to get caught up.

Mom has had some incredible creative cooking lately.  Some of the soups she's put together have been so delicious, and the salads have been great too.  Maddie's diet has been a particular frozen pizza (cooked, of course), tater tots, ramen noodles, chicken nuggets, tacos, and gallons and gallons of green tea.  She goes through so many bottles of those things.

We read tonight, moving forward in this latest Kingdom Keepers book, and then we said our prayers afterwards.  It was a decent day today.